The security of the program’s future has been dealt a significant blow in recent years, most notably when current US Secretary of State John Kerry declined to renew the funding the US government had provided when Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State.

According to the US-Ireland Alliance, the program costs $600,000 to fund per year. In the past, the United States government had provided $485,000 and the Department of Education in Northern Ireland paying $100,000 and the remainder coming from donations.